theory

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Are Consumers Really Rational?

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Much of consumer choice theory relies on the notion of individuals as economic agents; that is, beings of absolute rationality who don’t struggle with everyday problems like self-control and decision-fatigue. These agents conduct marginal analysis to extract every drop of wellbeing from seemingly routine decisions. In the late 70s, however, psychologists began to interfere with …

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The boom and the bust

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Modern economists have consistently failed to predict and explain the business cycle. Mitchell Harvey argues that an old idea, long rejected by the mainstream economics profession, may be worth reconsidering.

The boy who cried wolf

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By mapping out the mechanics of a classic story using game theory, David Huang examines the idea of reputation, its importance and associated strategies.

Going, going, gone!

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Through our life as an economics major in undergraduate school, for three years we are repeatedly bombarded with consumer and producer theory, game theory, and general equilibrium theory. It is not until we are very familiar with these different topics, do we then come across what is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting topics in microeconomics. Auction theory and mechanism design.

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Theory, Data, and Experiments

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By James Bland

“It’s one of the few forms of interaction with people that I don’t find repellent.” – Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) on human experimentation, The Big Bang Theory, series 4 episode 20.

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